A Breach of Faith
1 Chronicles 10:1-14
If God wrote your obituary, what would He say? Verses 13-14 of 1 Chronicles 10 provide a sad obituary for a man that been called of God but whose life ended in tragedy and ruin. God cuts no quarters in telling us exactly what brought about this downfall. Today, I would like us to consider what God has to say concerning Saul that might be a warning to us all.
I. Saul breached faith with God.
A. Saul’s privilege
1. From a natural point of view he was outstanding – 1 Samuel 9:2b “There was not a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.”
2. He was given a new heart by God – 1 Samuel 10:6, 9 “the Spirit of the LORD will come upon you (Saul) mightily, and you shall … be changed into another man....God gave him another heart.”
3. He was chosen by God to save Israel – 1 Samuel 10:24 “And Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen? There is none like him among all the people."
4. God touched over lives around him – 1 Samuel 10:26 “And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and valiant men went with him, whose hearts God had touched.”
5. Of good standing in the nation, distinctly called and commissioned by God, honored with the friendship of Samuel, surrounded by a band of men whose hearts God had touched, everything was in his favor. – Morgan
B. Christian’s privilege
1. Believer’s have a new heart in a new man – II Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
2. Believer’s have been chosen by God to take the message of salvation to the world – John 15:16 “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain : that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.”
3. God provides for us to not to have to be Lone Ranger Christians but touches the lives of others to co-labor with us. – 1 Corinthians 3:9 “For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.”
C. Saul disobeyed the command of God.
1. Saul obeyed God but not to the letter.
2. In 1 Samuel 15 we see, Saul in obedience to the command of God along with his valiant men fighting the Amalekites. He won the battle, but he failed to do everything the Lord said. Rather he chose to do it his way.
3. There are those who feel that the end justifies the means.
4. Note what God’s Word says:
i. 1 Samuel 15:23-24 ““Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you from being king.”
D. While vacationing, a little girl, who was told not to go by the cliff, wandered out toward it when her dad fell asleep. She reached out over the rocks and grabbed a pretty flower and ran back to her dad and said look what I brought you. He grabbed the flower and threw it down and clutched the little girl and said, "You have disobeyed. I'd rather have you than anything you could give me."
E. To disobey Him is the ultimate treason. To say, "No, Lord," is a contradiction of terms. He is not Lord when He is told, "No"! – Dr. E. H. Henderson, 3-31-91.
F. Verse 13 - So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD
G. V 13 (ESV) - So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the LORD in that he did not keep the command of the LORD
II. Saul sought the advice of the world.
A. 1 Chronicles 10 13 - So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it.
B. Saul did not have a genuine connection with God and did not seek God for the difficulties of his life. He consulted a medium for guidance, but not the LORD God.
C. 1 Samuel 28:7 “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium that I may go to her and inquire of her." And his servants said to him, "Behold, there is a medium at Endor."
D. Paul warns the believer to beware of "the wisdom of this world" (I Cor 1:20; 2:6; 3:19)
E. The world system is committed to at least four major objectives, which I can summarize in four words: fortune, fame, power, pleasure. First and foremost: Fortune, money. The world system is driven by money; it feeds on materialism. Second: Fame. That is another word for popularity. Fame is the longing to be known, to be somebody in someone else's eyes. Third: Power. This is having influence, maintaining control over individuals or groups or companies or whatever. It is the desire to manipulate and maneuver others to do something for one's own benefit. Fourth: Pleasure. At its basic level, pleasure has to do with fulfilling one's sensual desires. It's the same mindset that's behind the slogan: "If it feels good, do it." Charles Swindoll, Living Above the Level of Mediocrity, p.219.
F. Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
G. Psalms 1:1 “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly…”
III. Saul failed to seek God and His will.
A. Verse 14 - And enquired not of the LORD: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse.
B. Saul did not have a genuine connection with God and did not seek God for the difficulties of his life. He consulted a medium for guidance, but not the LORD God.
C. Jameison-Faussett-Brown Bible in their commenting on the statement in 1 Samuel 28:6 that Saul inquired of God state that Saul “…had done so in form, but not in the spirit of a humble penitent, nor with the believing confidence of a sincere worshipper. His enquiry was, in fact, a mere mockery, and his total want of all right religious impressions was manifested by his rushing from God to a wretched impostor in the service of the devil”
D. James 1:5 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that gives to all men liberally, and upbraids not; and it shall be given him.”
E. There are many today who, like Saul, seek counsel from everywhere but God and His Word! Usually, it is because they don’t want to hear what God has to say!
IV. Saul lost everything that God had given to him
A. Verse 14b “therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse.”
B. Saul had lost contact with God, lost God’s anointing, lost his character, lost his kingdom and lost everything.
C. The Lord has never exaggerated in warning us of sin's devastating consequences - for us and for our descendants.
D. The Word of God declares in Exodus 34:7 that Lord is One “keeps loving-kindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations."
E. Adrian Rogers once said “Years ago, a country preacher took me aside and said, ‘Adrian, I want to tell you something about sin.’ I've never forgotten what he said, whether it was original with him, I know not. But he said, ‘Sin will take you further than you want to go. Sin will keep you longer than you want to stay. And sin will cost you more than you want to pay.’”
F. Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death…”
V. Saul brought tragedy to those nearest him
A. 1 Chronicles 10:6-7 “So Saul and his three sons died, and all his house died together. And when all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that they had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook their cities and fled; then the Philistines came and dwelt in them.
B. Saul brought desolation to his own life, to his family, to those who had served with him, and to the nation of Israel.
C. We must never forget that we do not operate in a vacuum and that one person’s sin affects others well beyond himself.
D. Remember the story of Achan and his sin that brought disaster to Israel at AI?
E. When we sin, our sin affects others. As John Donne put it, "No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main." - copied
F. 1 Corinthians 12:26 “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.”
Saul committed a breach of faith and it cost him dearly. When you accepted Christ you pledged your faith to Him. Have you breached that faith by your actions? Thank God for 1 John 1:8-9 “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” He ever is faithful. There is no breach of faith with Him.
